Chicago – The funniest jokes are the ones that ring true. They aren’t merely punch-lines. Cathartic laughs are earned not through formulaic quips but through candid observations both startling and relatable. I often find myself feeling awestruck in the presence of a great comic, simply because of their willingness to say what we’ve all thought but never dared to mention in public.
“Awe-inspiring” is certainly a phrase that applies to the life of Bill Hicks, a phenomenally gifted comedian who used his satire as a vehicle for enlightenment. His strict Southern Baptist upbringing provided him with a wealth of early material, while his hatred of hypocrisy led him to be openly critical of religion, media and the U.S. government, which may have played a key role in garnering him a large fan base in the U.K. No wonder this 2009 documentary was directed by British filmmakers Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas,...
“Awe-inspiring” is certainly a phrase that applies to the life of Bill Hicks, a phenomenally gifted comedian who used his satire as a vehicle for enlightenment. His strict Southern Baptist upbringing provided him with a wealth of early material, while his hatred of hypocrisy led him to be openly critical of religion, media and the U.S. government, which may have played a key role in garnering him a large fan base in the U.K. No wonder this 2009 documentary was directed by British filmmakers Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas,...
- 6/8/2011
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
How does one document a legend, especially one as controversial and influential as comedian Bill Hicks? Throughout his career, he was labeled a rebel, a saint, someone who looked out for the best of America, and someone who was the embodiment of everything wrong with America. Instead of making the film an indictment or tribute to a comic that transcended telling jokes, directors Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas use their film American: The Bill Hicks Story to simply tell the story of the man himself.
There doesn’t seem to be anything revolutionary in the idea, but the truly riveting aspect is how the filmmakers tell the story through animating a wealth of photos accompanied with current voice over of the people who knew his story the best, including his family, his closest friends, and fellow comedians. This style, somewhere between cut-out dolls and Pixar movies, allows us to see...
There doesn’t seem to be anything revolutionary in the idea, but the truly riveting aspect is how the filmmakers tell the story through animating a wealth of photos accompanied with current voice over of the people who knew his story the best, including his family, his closest friends, and fellow comedians. This style, somewhere between cut-out dolls and Pixar movies, allows us to see...
- 4/15/2011
- by Mike Anton
- The Film Stage
A worthy tribute to the late, great comedian and iconoclast Bill Hicks. By Andrew Pulver
Ever since Bill Hicks's death in 1994 at the age of 32, the Texan comic has been subject to a creeping lionisation that has promoted him gradually into the upper reaches of those all-time greatest lists magazines and TV channels love to establish. I personally have never had a great deal of time for Hicks's shouty, hectoring comedy – it's like being trapped in a room with a sociology student who's just drunk a dozen espressos – but this is a really interesting film biography of him, mining the deepest reaches of his childhood and adolescence to produce a thoroughly convincing and detailed portrait.
Film-makers Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas – both British – are lucky that Hicks's family and childhood pals were happy to unburden themselves to camera, and fill in the blanks of Hicks's early years; they're even...
Ever since Bill Hicks's death in 1994 at the age of 32, the Texan comic has been subject to a creeping lionisation that has promoted him gradually into the upper reaches of those all-time greatest lists magazines and TV channels love to establish. I personally have never had a great deal of time for Hicks's shouty, hectoring comedy – it's like being trapped in a room with a sociology student who's just drunk a dozen espressos – but this is a really interesting film biography of him, mining the deepest reaches of his childhood and adolescence to produce a thoroughly convincing and detailed portrait.
Film-makers Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas – both British – are lucky that Hicks's family and childhood pals were happy to unburden themselves to camera, and fill in the blanks of Hicks's early years; they're even...
- 5/14/2010
- by Andrew Pulver
- The Guardian - Film News
Rating: 8/10
Directors: Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas
Cast: Bill Hicks, Dwight Slade, Lynn Hicks, Mary Hicks, Steve Hicks, Kevin Booth, John Farnetti
I consider myself to be a huge Bill Hicks fan, so it was with great anticipation that I braved the cold to see American: The Bill Hicks Story on the final night of SXSW. In attendance were family and close personal friends of the legendary comedian and it was very clear that they were truly supportive of this film. For those of you who don’t know, Bill Hicks is considered to be one of the greatest stand-up comedians of all time. Often referred to as the comedian’s comedian, Hicks’ brand of comedy is both thought-provoking and immensely funny. Prone to long political rants that border on obnoxious, Hicks isn’t for everyone. Sadly, Hicks never gained the popularity he deserved in this country, though widely considered...
Directors: Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas
Cast: Bill Hicks, Dwight Slade, Lynn Hicks, Mary Hicks, Steve Hicks, Kevin Booth, John Farnetti
I consider myself to be a huge Bill Hicks fan, so it was with great anticipation that I braved the cold to see American: The Bill Hicks Story on the final night of SXSW. In attendance were family and close personal friends of the legendary comedian and it was very clear that they were truly supportive of this film. For those of you who don’t know, Bill Hicks is considered to be one of the greatest stand-up comedians of all time. Often referred to as the comedian’s comedian, Hicks’ brand of comedy is both thought-provoking and immensely funny. Prone to long political rants that border on obnoxious, Hicks isn’t for everyone. Sadly, Hicks never gained the popularity he deserved in this country, though widely considered...
- 3/23/2010
- by Ronnita Miller
- GordonandtheWhale
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